Will Ferrell Pulls Out Of ‘Reagan’ Movie
Well, that was fast.
It was just yesterday that news broke about Will Ferrell signing on to play former President Ronald Reagan in a political comedy, but the comedy superstar reportedly pulled out to the project Friday after harsh backlash from Ronald Reagan’s surviving family.
The Reagan script, which appeared on the 2015 Blacklist, is about an intern whose job it is to convince President Reagan he’s playing the Commander-in-Chief in a movie, after the president has developed symptoms of Alzheimer’s. Reagan did in fact suffer from Alzheimer’s disease and it is rumored that he did not have full mental capacity during all of his presidency.
After the announcement was made, Reagan’s children publicly objected to making fun of his illness. His son Michael Reagan tweeted that those involved with the film project “should be ashamed” and that “Alzheimer is not a comedy.”
Apparently the criticism was enough for Ferrell to have a change of heart, and the future of the project is uncertain. Odds are, it will be very difficult for the production to find an actor of Ferrell’s stature who would be willing to sign on after Ferrell pulled out on what appear to be ethical/compassionate grounds. But there’s always Ricky Gervais.
h/t Variety
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